Revitalization, reform and strengthening of the United Nations Environment Programme

The Governing Council

1. THE ENVIRONMENT FUND

1. Welcomes the report of the Executive Director on the evaluation of the management and administrative support of the United Nations Environment Programme, 1/ the important contribution of the Committee of permanent Representatives and the management and administrative support costs efficiencies achieved in the biennium 1997 – 1997 and proposed for the biennium 1998 – 1999;

2. Notes the final 1996-1997 management and administrative support costs expenditures, subject to the final closure of 1996 – 1997 accounts of 29.5 million United States dollars and the efficiencies implemented by the Executive Director that resulted in additional savings of approximately 4.36 million dollars;

3. Further notes the letter dated 30 October 1997 from the Chairman of the Advisory Committee on Administrative and Budgetary Questions addressed to the Executive Director of the United Nations Environment Programme, 2/ which reiterates the recommendation of the Advisory committee that the level or resources to be made available to the United Nations Environment Programme should be clearly defined in advance, so as to provide a more secure and reliable base for Programme planning and management; 3/

4. Notes with concern that the overall low level of contributions, received, pledged and projected, to the Environment Fund for the biennium 1998-1999 falls short of the level required to implement and approved 1998-1999 Programme of 75 million dollars;

5. Notes with concern the large discrepancy in funding provided from the United Nations regular budget to the United Nations Office at Nairobi, in relation to the United Nations Office at Vienna and the United Nations Office at Geneva, and urges the Executive Director to report thereon to the secretary-general of the United Nations;

6. Requests the Executive Director to move quickly to implement, as appropriate, the recommendations of the recent report of the office of Internal Oversight Services 4/ and to report thereon to the Governing Council at its twentieth session;

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1/ UNEP/GCSS.V/4.

2/ UNEP/GCSS.V/INF/3 (English only)

3/ Ibid., sixth paragraph.

4/ A/51/810.

7. Confirms the 1998-1999 management and administrative support costs budget appropriation of 27.5 million dollars, subject to the continued feasibility of the approved 1998-1999 Programme of 75 million dollars;

8. Urges the Executive Director to manage the 1998-1999 management and administrative support costs budget appropriation with the utmost economy and to achieve greater efficiencies in those offices funded from the management and administrative support costs budget;

9. Requests the Executive Director further to reduce 1998-1999 management and administrative support cost expenditures, bearing in mind Governing Council decision 18/42 of 25 May 1995, should contributions so the Environment Fund fall short of the level required to implement the approved 1998-1999 Programme of 75 million dollars;

10. Approves the conciliation of the extraordinary additional 1998-1999 management and administrative support costs appropriation of one million dollars, as outlined in paragraph 7 of the report of the Executive Director on the evaluation of the management and administrative support of the United Nations Environment Programme, 1/ and the Executive Director’s proposal to direct these resources into Fund Programme activities, in accordance with the Nairobi Declaration on the Role and Mandate of the United Nations Environment Programme;5/

11. Requests the Executive Director to re-examine the 1998-1999 Programme approved by the Governing Council at its nineteenth session 6/ in the light of the core elements of the focuses mandate of the Nairobi Declaration, and to report thereon to the Governing Council at its twentieth session;

12. Authorizes the Executive Director to prepare a 2000-2001 Programme of work and also

To define a core Programme for the biennium 2000-2001, making use of the priorities

Of the Nairobi Declaration , that establishes a direct and realistic link between the volume of activities to be undertaken and available financing, to be presented to the Governing Council at its twentieth session;

13. Requests the Executive Director to increase the involvement of Governments in Programme and budget formulation and priority setting between sessions of the

Governing Council, using its subsidiary bodies;

14. Reconfirms the Executive Director’s authority to adjust the apportionment for each budget line by 20 per cent, within the overall appropriation for Fund activities in 1998-1999;

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5/ Governing Council decision 19/1, annex.

6/ See Governing Council document UNEP/GC.19/22 and Corr.1, part four, and decision 19/22 of 7 February 1997.

II. REGIONAL OFFICES

15. Urges the Executive Director:

(a) To work with Governments to establish a common core mandate and set of regional responsibilities and propose adequate allocations for each regional office, while recognizing the specificity of each of the offices;

(b) To ensure that regional issues pertaining to the Programme preparation, prioritization and implementation processes of the United Nations Environment Programme are a part of its core mandate;

(c) To present to the Governing Council at its twentieth session a comprehensive report of the functioning of the regional offices;

16. Further urges the Executive Director of ensure a clear definition of the functional and structural relationship between the United Nations Environment Programme and its regional offices;

17. Requests the Executive Director to propose to the Governing Council at its twentieth session measures for the strengthening of regionalization and decentralization through the involvement of regional ministerial and other relevant forums, as contained in paragraph 4 (b) of the Nairobi Declaration, and to take into account the financial implications of such measures;

III. SPECIALIZED OFFICES

18. Urges the Executive Director:

(a) To work with Governments to reconfirm or adjust if necessary the mandates of the two specialized offices;

(b) To present to the Governing Council at its twentieth session a comprehensive report of the functioning of these officers;

IV. TRUST FUNDS AND COUNTERPART CONTRIBUTIONS

19. Notes with concern the substantial growth of trust funds and counterpart contributions and the relatives decline in the resources available to the Environment Fund;

20. Emphasizes the primacy of the multilateral decision-making process and the environment Fund;

21. Expresses its concern that the administrative and management costs of trust funds and counterpart contributions may be borne, in full, by these sources of funding and that part of these costs are charged to the Environment Fund while noting the relevance of the continuing debated at the United Nations level of the administrative and management costs of trust funds and counterpart contributions for the management and administrative

Support costs budget of the United Nations Environment Programme, and requests the Executive Director to report thereon to the Governing Council as mandate is Governing Council decision 19/24 B of 7 February 1997;

22. Urges Governments to make their non-convention contributions first and foremost to the Environment Fund;

23. Urges the Executive Director to ensure that trust fund and counterpart contributions, other than contributions to conventions and the contributions from the Global Environment facility, as clearly and directly related to the core Programme areas identified in the Nairobi Declaration and to seek further funding from these and other sources;